Studio couch



Oct. 22, 1963 G. s. CLOUSE 3,107,362

STUDIO COUCH Filed April 18, 1961 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 l3 I 1" I l s 5 s nix i /z l I n 3/ ii I I 3'6 22 INVENTOR.

GEaRaE 5 cam/5s Max Zed ATTORNEYS G. S. CLOUSE Oct. 22, 1963 STUDIO COUCH 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed April 18, 1961 INVENTOR. GEORGE 5 61-0055 BY flaw n 1 M ATTORNEYS hired Patent dice 3,107,362? Patented Oct. 22, 1963 3,107,362 STUDIO COUCH George S. Clause, Seattle, Wasln, assignor to :Irrway Industries, Inc, Seattle, Wash, a corporation of Washington 7 Filed Apr. 18, 1961, Ser. No. 103,863 1 Claim. (Cl. -17) This invention relates to a studio couch, and more particularly to the frame structure of a studio couch.

The general object of my invention is to provide a studio couch which may be extended and retracted, and which permits its component frames, one a supporting frame and the other a couch frame, to be either assembled or disassembled with unusual case and expedition.

A more specific object is to provide a means to carry the couch frame forward or back without binding or skewing of the movable frame portion.

Another specific object is to provide a firrn support for the movable frame in both the extended and retracted positions.

Yet another object is to provide a simple yet durable structure which lends itself to economy of manufacture.

In the accompanying drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a top plan view showing the frame structure of a studio couch embodying the preferred teachings of my invention.

FIG. 2. is a front elevational view thereof.

FIG. 3 is a side elevational view employing full lines to represent the frame structure in retracted position and broken lines to indicate the frame in both a partially extended and a fully extended position.

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view drawn to an enlarged scale on line '44 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary transverse vertical sectional view on line 5-5 of FIG. 4.

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary transverse vertical sectional view drawn to an enlarged scale on line 66 of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary front elevational view drawn to an enlarged scale detailing the structure circled at 7 in FIG. 2, parts being broken away and shown in transverse vertical section.

The studio couch of the present invention comprises a movable rectangular frame portion or bed frame 10 which is supported by a generally rectangular stationary frame portion 11.

The supporting frame has a front and a back beam 12 and 13, respectively, said beams being parallel angle irons placed so as to occupy approximately the same horizontal plane. Welded to the butt ends of said front and back beams, respectively, are two front legs 14 and two back legs 16. Each of said legs has a uniform box shape in cross section, and has its top end closed by a cap 15.

The front and back legs on each side of the frame are braced by a longitudinal channel rail 17 which is welded to the inside face of each leg. Each of the two channels has its rear end positioned immediately below the back beam 13 and the front end immediately above the front beam 12', so that the channels lie parallel to one another with a gradual upward slope from the rear to the front. For additional reinforcing support, each channel is or may be also welded directly to the front and back beams. The trough 18 of each channel rail 17 faces to the inside, and vertical lips 20 and 21, respectively, extend from the upper and lower flanges of each channel to partially close the open face of the trough.

The rectangle of the movable frame 10 is defined by four beams shaped as angle irons of identical cross section, welded to one another at the corners and disposed with the exterior corner edge being the upper and outside edge of each beam. The front beam is designated 22,

the rear 23, and the two sides 24. Two tubular L-shaped members 26 are welded at their upper ends to the inside vertical face of the back beam 23 near each end thereof. The horizontal portion of each L extends laterally outward and has journaled on its end a respective trolley wheel 27 for rotation on a transverse horizontal axis. Each of said trolley wheels 27 tracks in its related channel trough 18 for longitudinal movement therein.

Each of two L-shaped swing arms 31, one at each end of the frame 10, has its horizontal portion 29 slip-fitted in a hole '28 which is drilled into the outer side surface of each front leg 14, receiving a pivot mounting therefrom for swing motion about a transverse horizontal axis. The upstanding portions 32 of the swing arms extend generally upward and, in order to pivot about an axis paralleling that of the pivoted sections 29, are secured at their upper ends by bolts 33 to the inside vertical surface of the side members 24 at a point spaced from the front beam 22 a distance between a half or a third of the overall length of the frame 10. A transverse bar 34, shaped in vertical profile as a shallow V to accommodate any sag in an overlying cover spring (not shown), is welded at each end to the upper ends of the swing arms so that said arms move as one.

Upstanding from the front and back beams 22 and 23 are two transverse vertical flanges 36 and 37, respectively, to confine a cushion (not shown) therebetween. Two tubular posts 38 extend downwardly, one from each end portion of the front beam 22, and each post is welded to the vertical inside face of said beam by means of a right angle projection formed at the upper end thereof. To reinforce the frame 110, two longitudinal torsion bars 40* are welded between front and rear beams 22 and 23.

The operation of the couch is illustrated in FIG. 3. The supporting frame 11 remains stationary at all times while the movable frame 10 normally lies in either a retracted position (shown in full lines) or a fully extended position (shown in dotted lines). A raised intermediate position (also in dotted lines) is shown merely to illustrate the transitory middle position of the movable frame as the couch is moved from extended to retracted position or vice versa.

To swing the bed forward, the movable frame 10 is grasped at the front and pulled forward with a slight lift. As the rear end of the frame '10 rolls forward on the trolley wheels 27, the weight of the front end of the frame 10 is relieved from the posts 38 and is supported by the swing arms 32. The upper pivots of the swing arms trace an are as the frame 10 moves forward, and as the frame 10 reaches a fully extended position the posts 38 again contact the ground floor. To retract the couch, the front of the frame 10 is pushed back and up to retrace the identical path just described.

The advantages of the invention, it is thought, will have been clearly understood from the foregoing detailed description of the illustrated preferred embodiment. Minor changes will suggest themselves and may be resorted to without departing from the spirit of the invention, wherefore it is my intention that no limitations be implied and that the hereto annexed claim be given a scope fully commensurate with the broadest interpretation to which the employed language admits.

What I claim is:

A studio couch comprising a rectangular supporting frame having a front leg and a rear leg at each of the opposite sides thereof, a respective channel for each of the two sides of said frame secured rigidly to the inside face of the related front and back legs, the two channels occupying a common generally horizontal plane and each having its trough facing inwardly and open at the front, a rectangular bed frame bordered along (the sides by angleiron rails placed so that one flange thereof is disposed porting frame, said bed frame having two L members de-' pending rigidly from the rear side of said bed frame, each L member reaching outwardly at its lower end and being fitted upon the outer end thereof with a roller tracking in a related one of said channels for longitudinal motion therein, a respective swing arm of L-shaped configuration for each of the two sides of the couch each occupying a position to the outside of the supporting frame in the space between said frame and the vertical flange of the bed-frames related rail, removable bolts pivotally connecting the upper end of each swing arm to the related vertical flange, each swing arm reaching inwardly at its lower end and having the free extremity thereof slipfitted for pivotal and endwi'se motion in an outwardlyfacing mating hole provided by a related one of said front legs, said pivots permitting swing motion about transverse horizontal axes which coincide as between the two sides of the couch, and two additional front legs rigidly secured to said bed frame and finding a ground rest only at a fully retracted or a fully extended position of the bed frame, the two swing arms being made to swing in unison by a cross-member extending as an integral connection from the upper end of one to the upper end of the other arm, the framework of the supporting frame permitting unobstructed withdrawal of the rollers from and introduction of the rollers to the open ends of the channels.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 613,582 Lund Nov. 1, 1898 1,590,090 Herz June 22, 1926 1,817,760 Peters et al. Aug. 4, 1931 2,557,734 Fox June 19, 1951 2,745,707 Sebens May 15, 1956 2,907,053 Fox Oct. 6, 1959 2,943,333 Blecker et al. July 5, 1960 2,953,792 Fleischer Sept. 27, 1960 2,972,754 Weidner Feb. 28, 1961 3,005,997 Fox Oct. 31, 1961 

